Projected Pleasure (14 page)

Scared for his life, Marley tried to calm him. The intake of air was too much. He was going to hyperventilate if he didn’t slow down.

“Shh, it’s okay, Gerald. We won’t let anyone hurt you.” Marley lowered herself, trying to sooth him.

While she leaned over him brushing the hair back from his face, pale hands gripped her shoulders with surprising force, pulling her chest down to his face. Teeth broke through her skin while she screamed for him to stop. She could feel the blood start to leave her body. What in the hell was Gerald doing, trying to kill her? Seconds went by and still she couldn’t break his death grip.

Cole burst through the door, knocking it off its hinges, and helped Zachary try to pry her and Gerald apart. But the longer he drank her blood the stronger he became. Black dots danced around her vision while she fought from sinking into unconsciousness. Finally, a large intake of breath was followed by her release.

Gerald blurrily came into focus after she blinked a few times. She could feel Zachary pushing cloth into her chest, but she only could hear one thing.

“Jordan! Jordan’s the Alpha. He’s not dead,” Gerald screamed.

“He tried to kill me. God help me, I’m the traitor! I betrayed the pack to get Jordan out last time. Don’t you all see? It’s Marley’s blood that kept him from being killed. It’s one of the reasons he wants her.

“He said she’d grow into one of the most powerful werewolves and he’s right! Even dismembered, Jordan healed in two days. You didn’t remove his head or heart. You didn’t even burn him!” he screamed, hysterically.

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“What in the hell are you talking about, Gerald?” Cole growled at him.

The frustrated sigh that escaped the bloody mouth turned into a powerful growl at the end. “Marley’s line is from Helix, the purest werewolf there is. Jordan has done nothing but obsess on how Demetri and Marley are going to be the foundation of his pack. Her and Jordan are marked and every day she gets stronger, so does he.

“His powers are terrifying. He’s nothing like he used to be. Now he’s ten times stronger. Once he gets her with a child and they start their own line, he wants to eventually merge the two together.”

Marley couldn’t hear anymore. She was going to be sick. The nightmares that haunted her, that kept her reclusive here in this mansion for so many months, were coming back, crippling her with fear. She needed to leave, to take Demetri and flee.

“You will not leave,” Zachary boomed down at her. “I won’t let him get to you or our son. I will die protecting you and so will everyone here in this pack.”

“He’s right,” Cole said, stepping forward. “We won’t let him get to either one of you. I promise you that.”

“I’ll protect you, too, Marley. I didn’t know what Jordan had become. I’m sorry. This is so unlike him, but I see he’s not the same person anymore. If you and your husband will allow me, I’d like to join your pack.” Josephine walked through the door, water still dripping from her hair. Marley assumed she must have heard the commotion.

Zachary removed the cloth that was pushed against Marley’s chest. The wound, amazingly, was already almost healed. Gerald gasped in amazement.

“I told you! Look at her!” he said excitedly in the background.

“We’d love you to join the pack, Josephine,” Zachary said, glaring at Gerald and helping Marley to stand.

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She looked at an almost perfectly healthy person in front of her.

How had her blood done that? And who was this person Helix? She had so many questions.

“So what happens to me,” Gerald asked nervously from the bed.

His words tore her from the questions running through her mind while Cole’s thoughts pushed their way through. She knew the punishment for betraying pack. He caused the deaths of eleven other members who were innocent in all of this. The laws for shifters were the same everywhere—betrayal equals their own demise.

“You die,” Marley said, advancing toward him. “You are responsible for eleven deaths, the safety of my son, and you’ve betrayed your Alpha. There’s no living through all of that. You know the rules.”

“You can’t kill me! I told you about Jordan. It’s the reason they wanted me dead. I knew too much.”

Zachary grabbed her before she reached the bed. “Marley, it’s not your responsibility to take care of my dirty work. Let me handle him.

You go let everyone know the news. Until Jordan is found, this house and the remaining pack will continue to be under lockdown.”

Pausing, she looked at Gerald. “The first time I met you, Zachary was trying to persuade me to go outside, but I was afraid. Do you remember what you said to me?”

Gerald’s eyes clouded with tears. “I told you there was nothing to fear. I told you I would die before I let anyone hurt you,” he breathed out ruggedly.

“Yes, you tried to convince me how the pack always protected what they considered theirs. I took you for the poster boy of what we stood for. Gerald, I’m so disappointed in you,” Marley said, feeling herself tear up at how much he truly betrayed and hurt her.

“I’m so sorry. Please forgive me.”

“I’ll forgive you when Jordan is no longer a threat.”

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Marley walked out of the room, Josephine following closely at her side. She needed to check on Demetri. Her son was top priority. If Jordan was indeed still alive, then she wasn’t taking any chances.

“Josephine, I have to tell you up front. I’m not so sure I trust you.

You were just devastated over Jordan’s death. Now you want to join our pack. Why? It doesn’t make sense to me.”

A strong grip stopped Marley as she reached the top of the stairs.

Her eyes went to Josephine’s hard gaze. Just the look she was giving her made the possibility of Jordan being alive a reality.

“I join your pack because loyalty was the one thing my brother taught me before he left. Loyalty, honor, and truth were the three things drilled into us by our parents before they died. We moved here in hopes of joining Zachary’s families pack, but my parents died before we got the chance. I still remember my mother being excited at finding a line of Alphas who had the three things they cherished most.

“Truthfully, I don’t know what happened when my brothers left, but I’m telling you, Jordan was nothing like what you all talk about. I blame Demon. It had to be him who ruined my twin. Jordan was my heart, and my heart has ached since he left me. It’s like I knew all along he wasn’t the same person.”

Marley looked into her eyes trying to get a grasp on the person Jordan used to be. She remembered the good side of him. He was an amazing lover up until the moment he marked her. He was funny, witty, and very charming. The morning they ate breakfast together she had seen that side of him. But she also could remember the evil smiles and the way he lost it when she told him Demetri was meant to be with Zachary’s pack.

Clearing her thoughts, she proceeded down the hall. “I’m glad to have you on our side.” Marley laughed, opening Demetri’s door. A gust of wind brushed against her face. At the all-too-familiar smell, her world tilted. She wasn’t sure how she knew, but there was no denying what her mind screamed. Jordan. Josephine tensed, probably picked it up just as fast.

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“Oh, God!” Josephine screamed, running to Kylie’s unconscious body. Marley couldn’t do anything but stare at the open window.

Demetri was gone. Jordan had succeeded in breaching their estate line and getting her son. How was that even possible?

She didn’t think. She couldn’t. She just ran. The air felt light as she dove out of the two-story window. Shutting her eyes, she didn’t even think. She morphed. She hit the ground in her wolf form so smoothly the height change hadn’t made the smallest difference.

“Marley! Don’t go, it’s a trap! Marley, come back!” Josephine screamed down at her.

Running faster than what she thought possible, she didn’t stop, even when she breached the woods. Jordan’s scent pulled at her, and she followed it. But it was different than what she remembered so long ago. She’d always mistaken their smells for cologne, but they weren’t. He smelled almost like her now, sweeter. An inferno of heat nearly crippled her body. She knew she was getting stronger from being in wolf form, but so was Jordan, and she assumed Zachary and Cole were, too.

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The sounds of screaming had Cole running up the stairs with Zachary trailing right behind him. Something was wrong. He knew the moment Marley’s emotions went crazy. If they wouldn’t have been taking care of Gerald then he would’ve left the moment she became upset. But Gerald had been so tough it took Zachary longer than he thought to take him down. And Cole couldn’t chance leaving Zachary alone with a werewolf who was as strong as three put together.

They both broke through Demetri’s room, and he knew instantly what happened. Kylie sat up on the floor while Josephine was holding something to her head. Marley was nowhere to be seen.

“You tell me everything that happened right now!” Zachary voice roared through the room.

“I don’t know,” Kylie sobbed. “I was looking over the crib at Demetri and everything went black. There was no scent, nothing, Zachary, I promise.”

“Where’s my wife and son!”

“Marley dove out of the window the moment she realized Demetri was gone. She turned into a wolf in midair and ran toward the forest.

I’ve never seen anyone run that fast,” Josephine whispered toward the end.

“Fuck!” Zachary screamed, slamming his fist through the wall. “I told her I would protect our son. She was so scared when she knew Jordan was back. How did he even get inside!”

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Cole watched everyone jump at the rage Zachary displayed.

“Zach, calm down. I can talk to her. Let me try to convince her to come back.”

“Yes, tell her to come back.” He watched his alpha pace and then freeze, mid-step. “Oh God, Cole. She has to come back. Marley’s never been through a full moon before. I thought both of us could get her through it, but if Jordan and his pack have her, can you imagine what will happen? Think about it, Cole. Once she tastes the blood of her first kill, she’ll want to have sex, and she won’t care who it’ll be with.”

“Let me try,” Cole whispered. Just the thought of what could happen to Marley in the hands of Jordan and his men had his stomach turning. He closed his eyes and concentrated on their connection.

Marley, I know you just heard how Zachary reacted and what he
said. Please come home. Let us help bring Demetri back. You can’t do
it by yourself. We’ll all leave right away. You just have to come back.

Please, Marley! I beg you. Don’t give Jordan the satisfaction of
having you, too.

Over and over, Cole repeated his pleas to her, but she refused to communicate with him. He just prayed she would listen. He could feel her emotions still all over the place. Focusing on one in particular proved to be extremely hard. She was afraid, yet angry. A part of her even felt a pull for bloodlust. She would kill anyone in her path, and since she was already in wolf form and the moon was almost full, her sex drive would become uncontrollable.

“I begged her to come back. I’ll get everyone we can ready and pray she gets back in time to start the search.”

“Yes, you do that. I’m going to be in my room. Maybe I can project to see where she is at the moment. If I can locate her, we might be able to get to her before they do. Or before she gets to them.

I hope for all of our sakes she doesn’t reach them first.”

Cole watched Zachary leave the room. Josephine helped Kylie to her feet while they stood there quietly awaiting instructions. Taking a
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deep breath, Cole cleared his head and led the women downstairs. The moment he got to the bottom, he let out a howl that brought everyone scrambling toward him. From wall to wall it was crowded with pack.

“Jordan lives and he’s taken Demetri, our next leader. Zachary is trying to locate Marley at the moment. She ran after them before we could stop her. We’ll start a search as soon as he arrives.”

Nervous murmurs echoed throughout the room. Cole watched as someone walked forward.

“Cole, I helped tear him apart myself. How does he live? It’s impossible.”

This was exactly what he didn’t want. They probably had so many questions, and he wasn’t alpha. He could answer them, but he wasn’t sure how much Zachary wanted them to know. He tried to think of a way not to explain too much.

“Marley’s blood is very powerful. Jordan marked her not long before he was dismembered. Her blood kept him alive long enough for one of our own members to betray us and get Jordan to safety.”

Gasps exploded in the room. Cole quieted everyone down by raising his hand. “Zachary should be down shortly. I need everyone to shift and wait for us outside. It is imperative we find Marley as soon as possible. Be on guard while you wait. We don’t know how many the rival pack has.”

* * * *

The pull on the inside of Zachary’s stomach had him leaving his body. All of his focus went to Marley. He still hadn’t gotten the chance to redo the blood tie with her and their connection remained weak, but since she changed into a wolf, he could feel his overall power gaining strength. The projection hadn’t taken more than a few seconds of concentration, and he was free.

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Trees loomed out before him. Quickly, his body pulled down into the massive pine and oak forest. In seconds, he saw white flash ahead so fast it was nothing but a blur.

“Marley!” Zachary called to the all white wolf. He knew it was her. She was the only one he had ever seen before. The beauty of her form amazed him. Gracefully, she wove in and out of the trees with such speed any wolf wouldn’t be able to catch up. She already reached the middle of the forest.

“Marley!” Zachary growled again.